1. Technical Field
The embodiments herein generally relate to medical devices, and, more particularly, to a cervical spine retractor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional cervical spine retractors typically maintain their position by grasping the longus coli muscle that are released during surgical exposure. However, this approach generally does not provide a strong coupling and the retractor can easily shift (laterally and inferiorly) during surgery. Also, conventional retractors typically do not prevent creep of soft tissue around the retractor walls exposing them to damage from cautery, high-speed drill and other instruments. Additionally, more gentle retraction on soft tissue may help prevent pain and injury (i.e., neural praxia) that result from the use of rigid retractor walls.
Several cervical retraction devices are used by surgeons. As an example, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009/0187080, the complete disclosure of which, in its entirety, is herein incorporated by reference teaches a distraction and retraction assembly that allows retraction of soft tissue away from a reference plane. The assembly includes at least one retracting element each including a distal end having a formation allowing anchorage of the at least one retracting element. The assembly also includes a proximal end of the at least one retracting element capable of movement through at least one degree of freedom relative to the anchorage.